Ukraine War Threatens Crude Demand, Investment: OPEC

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens to intensify the surge in global inflation, hurting oil demand and investment, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries warned. 
International crude prices briefly hit a 13-year high of almost $140 a barrel last week as a boycott of Russian supplies deepened the shortfall in already tight world markets. 
Brent futures have since retreated by almost 30%, but fears persist over the danger of a long-term loss of exports from Russia, which is part of the OPEC+ coalition, Bloomberg reported.
“This conflict has so far led to a number of issues, including rising commodity prices, which are further escalating global inflation,” OPEC said in its monthly report. 
“The effects of the conflict and especially the impact of rising inflation, if sustained, will lead to a decline in consumption and investments to varying degrees.”
Growing inflation is proving a major challenge for the world economy, and inflicting a cost-of-living crisis in many countries, as supplies of raw materials fail to keep pace with the post-pandemic recovery in consumption – and face further constraints from the war unleashed in Ukraine. 
OPEC’s de facto leader Saudi Arabia has so far rebuffed US pressure to fill the gap left by Russia by opening the taps, partly out of reluctance to harm its political partnership with Moscow.